Abstract (150 Words)

Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) are increasingly entering the world of ecommerce by offering reservation capabilities directly from their websites. A measure of success for DMOs is the revenue generated by reservations as a result of their implementation of a central reservation system (CRS). This paper analyzes and compares the return from two models of CRS: a wholesale model, managed centrally by the DMO; and, a retail model, managed by individual properties. Findings support the hypothesis that an integrated model achieves a higher return than a de-centralized model. A number of factors contribute to the superior performance, such as experiential packaging, advanced discounting, value-added mechanisms, and overall, a more consistent marketing message supporting its CRS success.

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A Comparative Analysis of Wholesale and Retail Central Reservation System Booking Models

Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) are increasingly entering the world of ecommerce by offering reservation capabilities directly from their websites. A measure of success for DMOs is the revenue generated by reservations as a result of their implementation of a central reservation system (CRS). This paper analyzes and compares the return from two models of CRS: a wholesale model, managed centrally by the DMO; and, a retail model, managed by individual properties. Findings support the hypothesis that an integrated model achieves a higher return than a de-centralized model. A number of factors contribute to the superior performance, such as experiential packaging, advanced discounting, value-added mechanisms, and overall, a more consistent marketing message supporting its CRS success.